Sun plans a faster 1.2GHz chip for the top half of its Sun Fire line -- the "midframe" models including the 12-processor 4800, 24-processor 6800, 36-processor 12K and 72-processor 15K. (The 12K and 15K can accommodate more processors if input-output abilities are sacrificed.) The new chip is faster but dissipates 30 percent less heat than predecessors, sources said -- a key feature for keeping servers from suffering data corruption and crash problems that arrive with overheating. Sun also is working on its UltraSparc IV chip, a product that will fit into existing UltraSparc III servers when it arrives later this year. That processor will be a "dual-core" model that packs two processors onto a single slice of silicon, something IBM has with its Power4 chip and HP plans with its PA-RISC 8800 "Mako" chip. According to sources close to Sun, the new processors will be available on the 4800 and up, but not on the eight-processor 3800. That doesn't bode well for the 3800, which sources familiar with Sun's plans say will be phased out. The 3800 has overlapping capabilities compared to some lower-end Sun systems. At present, a 3800 with eight 1.05GHz processors and 32GB of memory lists for $357,000, or about £217,000, according to Sun's online store. A v880 with eight 900MHz processors and 32GB of memory lists for $130,000. Current midframe systems can run several independent operating systems on each machine, a feature called "partitioning" that makes it easier for a single system to replace several lesser machines. In addition, the midframe products use the same processor boards, letting customers move computing power from one system to another as needed. IBM eagerly jumped on the product changes as evidence that Sun hasn't been successful in driving mainframe features -- partitioning chief among them -- into lower-priced machines. "Sun's announcement of the v1280 and the abandoning of the 3800 compromises the midframe concept that Sun made a major push on just a short time ago," Big Blue said in a statement. "It seems that they are unable to offer customers true mainframe reliability at a reasonable price." IBM offers partitioning, though of a different type than Sun's, on its lower-end machines. Top-end improvements
For the 12K and 15K, Sun will introduce version 2 of its "capacity on demand" (COD) program, which lets customers switch on and pay for previously unused processors when computing requirements demand it -- rather than having them pay for idle processors. By axing certain fees, the new COD program will eliminate the price premium required by the current program, which charges companies to switch on additional processors -- a requirement that can cost more than if the processors are purchased active in the first place. Another new feature for the two top servers is a part of Solaris 9 called "memory placement optimisation", which works to speed performance by placing data in the banks of memory nearest the processors that need it. Sun also will improve the ability to reconfigure the systems without shutting them down, letting users upgrade processors, memory and input-output hardware as the machine continues to function. Input-output systems will boost the internal data transfer by about 50 percent, while a single partition in the system will now be able to hold a whopping 512GB of memory. Part of the Sun price cuts are made possible by the use of less expensive cabinets for the high-end systems, which will lower entry costs, sources said.
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